6m old, UT or OT?!?! Mulitple night wakings

[Robinkvernon]

Posted before and I think we've eliminated some of the issued.  Our (almost) 6 month old is waking up 2-3 times at night.  Usually at the following:

8-11 pm (early waking- he knows how to independent sleep-we put him down drowsy but he wants to be comforted to go back down)
2-3 am (wants to nurse)
5-6 am (wants to nurse)

And momma needs some sleep.........so what is the solution?  He is BF with me and gets one bottle of formula at child care.  He has been on EASY since birth and is a textbook baby.  We are on a 4 hour EASY routine.  Looks like:

7am Eat
9:15 (to 9:30)-11  Sleep
11am Eat (breast milk bottle)
1:15-3 Sleep
3pm Eat  (formula bottle at child care)
Then activity till 7pm which we nurse and go to sleep by 7:30

The one thing I've notice is he is falling asleep during the 7pm nursing.  Does that mean OT???  Please help me figure out why he has multiple wakings.  Once he is nursed he goes right back down but I feel he nurses when he's not hungry.

[katie80]

I think it does look like he might be OT, his last A time is quite long. Have you tried putting him for bed at 7pm instead, so feedng at 6:30?

[newkidontheblock]

Agree with PP. Sounds like OT to me as your last A is quite long. For us, wakings soon after BT always indicate OT.

Also, his A times quite short for a 6 month old. Is this the routine followed at the daycare? An increase in A times would mean the last nap ending later, decreasing the long A to bed and reducing the chances of OT. Most LOs are doing closer to 3hours A at that time. What do you think?
Average A times- BOOKMARK ME!

[Robinkvernon]

I made some adjustments this week and started his night routine at 6:45 with bedtime at 7:15 and that eliminated the first wake up!!  Thank you for the advice.

I am still getting a 1-3am wake up with him wanting to nurse. I always nurse him because he's on the thin side and could use the extra weight. Not sure if I'm doing accidental parenting....

I'm also going to work with his caregiver to increase his morning activity time. So would you say something like this?:
7am Wake & eat
7:30-9:30 activity
9:30-11 sleep

[katie80]

I am still getting a 1-3am wake up with him wanting to nurse. I always nurse him because he's on the thin side and could use the extra weight. Not sure if I'm doing accidental parenting....

No, not accidental parenting at all.  It's totally normal to still have a NF (or even 2) at this age for a BF baby.

I'm also going to work with his caregiver to increase his morning activity time. So would you say something like this?:
7am Wake & eat
7:30-9:30 activity
9:30-11 sleep

Yes, if she can change it, that looks more appropriate for his age.  Overall, maybe you could shoot for something like this...
W/E 7am
A
S 9:30-11am (or 11:30)
E 11am
A
S 1:30/2-3/3:30pm
E 3:30pm
A
E 6:30/6:45pm
S 7/7:15pm

[Robinkvernon]

Caregiver is going to extend activity time and I will keep you posted.

It brought up another question, my caregiver keeps 6 children so can't hold them all at nap time. I asked today and she says if my LO fusses she gives him about 5 minutes to see if he calms down then goes in and puts a hand on his back and reassures him. I don't think she's letting him "cry" (we are 100% against CIO like BW!). Could this have caused some trust issues that could lead to multiple night Wakings at home?

[newkidontheblock]

I don't think so. As Tracy says, S.L.O.W down and listen to your baby, so when he fusses - Stop, Listen, Observe and figure out What's up. If he is just fussing, I would leave him to it to see if he settles. You'll be surprised the number of times I think it won't happen and it eventually does. But if the cries escalate, you should ask her to go in to him immediately.

[katie80]

^^^ I agree!

[Robinkvernon]

Great advice. And yes, she goes in if it escalates and pats him on the back and tells him she loves him and its just nap time

I'm going to try the same tonight. I probably rush in too soon and don't follow SLOW. Keep you posted!

[katie80]

Keep us posted!

[Robinkvernon]

Well my update isn't great. We are still all over the place on night Wakings. We've extended activity time but we have from 3pm nursing to 6:45 nursing and 7:15 to go to bed and that may still be too long. He's falling asleep while nursing. 
Last night he woke at 9:30??? Then again at 11:45 and 5. My DH can sometimes resettle him but it's work. I did notice last night he woke up because his paci fell out.
Please help. I love my time nursing him but I really need more than 4 hours a time of sleep.

[katie80]

(((Hugs))) Can you please update us with a current EASY routine and his age? Do you think the paci is a prop... can he replug on his own?

[newkidontheblock]

Yes, do post your routine. Generally for us, wakings soon after bed as well as EWs are OT. You might need to bring BT a bit earlier. We can figure things out once we see your routine

[Robinkvernon]

He will be 7 months old tomorrow. He's a think baby and EBF (except for an occasional bottle at our sitters). We started solids 5 weeks ago.
6:45 wake up/nurse
7-9:15 activity
9:15 nap
11 eat & bottle
11-30-1:15 activity
1:15 nap
3 eat & bottle
3:15-6:00 activity
6 we start getting ready for bed, take a bath, read a book
6:45 nurse
7:15 bed

Last night he woke at 9:30, 12:35 and 5. He nursed and went right back to sleep.

[newkidontheblock]

Yes, definitely OT, IMO. There are a few changes which might help. His A times are very low for a 7 month old. Although he is napping anyway, it means that your pm nap is ending quite early, leaving a long A to bed and that is where the OT is coming into the picture. Pushing A times should sort this out:)